Like every review of the Model S we have seen, The Model S is truly unlike anything else on the road today. Nothing compares.

Recently, Top Gear’s Richard Hammond stated that the Model S’ acceleration is “Truly Mind Blowing” with its 0-60 mph time of 4.2 seconds (85 kWh Performance)

Like a few other reviews, Hammond loves the car and its unique features like the 17″ touch screen display, long range and quick charging (supercharging). Hammond enjoys how it is insanely fast and instantly gets up and goes, and so on.

However, Hammond agrees that some minor things can be improved like the interior quality and seats.

Aside from those quibbles, it’s hard to find fault with the Model S. It’s practical, safe, fast and…oh yeah…it’s just so happens to be electric!!!

imagine what BMW M3 could do with electric AWD drivetrain. This could be done today and it would be the best seller expensive sports car that sells a million cars annually, but car manufacturers just refuses to bring it on the markets.

But instead, we must wait until Tesla brings Model III performance+ AWD on markets.

no, Tesla does not need next gen batteries. Tesla’s Audia A4 Quattro equivalent at $35 000 pricepoint does require next gen batteries that are 30% cheaper, but today Tesla could sell it at 42000 base price — if they had sufficient production capacity.

Actually, next gen batteries are already here, but Tesla needs a gigafactory that takes time to be constructed as Tesla is the only car company that is right now investing on EV technology seriously. Others do not even try to solve the battery cost issue.

I assume Tesla is still using the Panasonic 18650A at 3.1 mAh. While the 3.4 mAh and perhaps a 3.6 mAh variants are/may be available, they seem to be prohibitively expensive. Within the form you can find other chemistries, typically Chinese, up to 1 Ah. However in testing, we can see the higher energy densities seem not to perform very well over time (not lifetime), especially at high current rates. You can find the tests here.

Tony, likely is the key word. Since Panasonic is actually developing the batteries, Tesla has very little input. I’m not sure what 10% larger means. 10% heavier, bigger cubic mm or more energy density? And at what price?

Sorry, but you don’t seem to understand the role that very large customers play in the supply chain. Panasonic will do anything to keep Tesla from going elsewhere. Even if right now there is no one else, a dissatisfied tesla will nurture other suppliers. It behooves Panasonic to meet their needs. Tesla has huge input.

By larger cell they mean physically larger. It’ll still be a cylindrical cell because they get best cooling that way. They used 18650 for the Roadster and Model S because there’s a lot of production capacity and it’s the cheapest form factor. But with the Gigafactory they get to choose an optimal cell size, and it’ll be taller and wider.

A 15% increase in volumetric energy density combined with a 10% increase in cell size would reduce the number of cells by about 21%. If the cell had the 10% increase proportionately in all dimensions they’d be able to decrease the pack footprint by around 16% for the same capacity. Elon Musk remarked about the car being 20% smaller so they could put most of the size increase in the height of the cell.

The physical reductions will help lower material and integration costs in the battery.

Gigafactory (it is a compound word) is needed, so that Tesla has better control over battery supply. It is not a good longterm goal to rely on subcontractor with such an essential part of the car.

Secondary reason is that gigafactory is needed, because there is also done the pack level assembly and recycling of old EV battery packs.

Tertiary reason is that gigafactory is needed because the market growth potential of EV and stationary storagebatteries is so enormous that battery supply cannot possibly to exceed the demand. Therefore any large scale investment on battery production is profitable due to inherent competitive advantage of scale benefits.

And ultimate reason is that with Gigafactory, Tesla can control that the energy production in the whole component supply chain of battery production is 100 % renewable power. This is actually very important reason, because Tesla’s company imago is based on being a moral example for the world. Old fassioned greedy capitalism does not suit into the imago of Tesla, because Tesla’s company philosophy is to make world a better place.

EV technology was mature enough for compelling EV and extensive fast charging network already about three years ago, but only Tesla has tried to create new markets. others are only tried to optimize government subsidies with inferior and untractive EVs.

There are only two alternatives. Either all ICE cars (at price category above $30 000) are better than Tesla or Tesla S is the best car ever manufactured. There is no such alternatives that e.g. BMW M5 is less good than Model S but Mercedes S550 is better than Model S. Because at that level, the differences between cars are mostly subjective. Some people prefer other features where as some people prefer some other.

Tesla S is still lacking with some advanced high-end features that requires more R&D resources that Tesla has to offer, but they will come at some point mostly during 2015.

When myself, or anyone says the phrase: Best Car Ever Made, obviously we can look back into history and recount a particular car that many deem groundbreaking. Take a Duesenberg, Rolls Royce, Bugatti Veyron, any number of Mercedes Benz, or a car that turned mass production and adoption by the average man into reality, like the Ford Model T. One could dissect and articulate that any number of race cars, custom cars, limited-production, one-offs or mass produced cars were the most significant of their time…But I am speaking of evolution, and where automobiles have evolved to at this point in history. I certainly do not believe nav systems, infotainment nor electronic driver safety aids even need to be mentioned compared to the actual drive
mechanisms and how they improve upon the entire wheeled private transportation sector as a whole.

When one vehicle moves the evolution of the entire world fleet forward in efficiency, performance, independence from a non-sustainable, resource-polluting ( fracking ), cost of ownership practicality and makes all that serious stuff very fun…
I think we have a true and very apparent leader for today, in the timeline of auto
history.